The Little Mermaid (Live-Action)

[Disney's Divinity]

It was always my favorite scene, too (and quite the challenge with the "Part of That World" and "Poor Unfortunate Souls" scenes to compete with, not to mention Triton and Ariel's confrontation scene). I always loved the colors of the scene, the teals, gold, and dark purples. It really was the full completion of Ursula's character, and I'm not sure she'd be as beloved without it.

I can see them changing it in the re-make, but I wish they'd keep it. They kept Genie Jafar, after all--but Aladdin was more faithful than this was. And the other ways of resolving the film they thought of for the original film weren't nearly as good, and I doubt this crew is anywhere near the same wave length as the talent who made the original to come up with anything better.

[Disney Duster]

I don't know if we'll see a giant Melissa McCarthy Ursula, but there's no way she's getting stabbed by a ship bow.

[Patricier21]

Well, they did do giant Ursula or rather her daughter Uma in descendants 2[And 3 And Royal wedding] so they very well well [hopefully] still do giant Ursula here is that in Under the Sea are the two scenes I’m looking the most forward to in this movie!

[Sotiris]

I don't think there will be a giant Ursula. It's one of those things that works better in animation than live-action. And if they didn't go for snake Jafar in the Aladdin remake, I highly doubt they are keeping giant Ursula. The fact they're changing the ending to have Ariel be the one who defeats her gives them an excuse to retool the entire climax of the film.

[Disney's Divinity]

If Aladdin was going to cut one of the transformations because it would look weird in live-action, cutting Genie Jafar would've been the one they cut, not Cobra Jafar. It came across more like they didn't want two transformations by Jafar in a row, which is why they had Iago transform instead before Jafar does. I don't think Ariel actually defeating her villain constitutes some great change, for it to necessitate changing the way the battle with the villain happens. That's just overthinking it in order to poopoo a female character defeating her own villain. For example, Ursula could actually throw the trident down at Ariel as she intended to do, only for Ariel to just barely avoid it unscathed. The trident shrinks and then she uses it to shoot Ursula in the face, the end. It would still function as Ursula causing her own downfall (the way she raises the ship that kills her in the original), because having turned herself into a giant makes her an easy target for Ariel to hit compared to her trying to hit Ariel from afar.

I think the fact that they even had the dragon from Sleeping Beauty in some form (just with Diablo instead of Maleficent herself) along with Genie Jafar, even though Maleficent was a re-imagining rather than a remake like Aladdin, gives me a little hope Giant Ursula will still be in this film even with all the changes they've made thus far. They definitely haven't been as faithful as Aladdin and B&tB were thus far--to this film's detriment--but if the outcry over Vanessa possibly getting cut made them change their mind there, hopefully that made them recognize Giant Ursula is as iconic a Disney villain scene as Dragon Maleficent or Genie Jafar. Here's hoping, anyway.

[Disney Duster]

For example, Ursula could actually throw the trident down at Ariel as she intended to do, only for Ariel to just barely avoid it unscathed. The trident shrinks and then she uses it to shoot Ursula in the face, the end. It would still function as Ursula causing her own downfall (the way she raises the ship that kills her in the original), because having turned herself into a giant makes her an easy target for Ariel to hit compared to her trying to hit Ariel from afar.

OMG! That was brilliant! But they should and will do something for complicated for the ending.

Was there really a lot of outcry over Vanessa getting cut? I don't remember that here. I certainly outcried it, but I didn't think many others did, and it would have to be more than just people here for them to change it.

[Disney's Divinity]

I guess maybe not as much as I remember, but it was one of those times when it was several people other than me bothered by the possibility she would be cut.

Reading that back now, I was just thinking of how the Giant Ursula scene sort of mirrors and inverses the shark scene. In that scene, Ariel is exploring a ship that doesn't move while a monster chases her. In the Giant Ursula scene, the monster (Ursula) is mostly stationary while the ships circle around her. Ursula is a more metaphorical beast trying to swallow her whole--they put a point on it more when Ariel enters her lair and makes the deal while literally "in the belly of the beast." That's part of the reason I always loved the deleted "Fathoms Below" because the verses about Ursula make her sound like a monster in the deep, like Moby Dick or the Kraken. I was just thinking about Cinderella, and that it does a similar reverse from the beginning in the climax: near the beginning Cinderella rescues a mouse from a trap and near the ending the mice rescue her from her locked room. I like when stories mirror themselves in ways you can see when you think about them long enough, makes them more interesting and adds more impact / substance to the stories, imo.

And perhaps Ursula raises the ships to sort of mock Ariel, who she must've watched exploring the ship as well as visiting Scuttle, I suppose, by hoping they might crash into and kill her (basically having something she'd been interested in ending up destroying her in a dark way). Ursula is a very twist-the-knife sort of character that way. As I was writing that part you quoted this morning, I had the thought that Ursula's death (speared to death) isn't that weird now that I think of it considering she had been trying to harpoon Ariel herself just before it happens.

[Sotiris]

That's just overthinking it in order to poopoo a female character defeating her own villain.

Ariel defeating her own villain is one of those changes that makes sense and is organic, so I'm all for it. I don't think there's anyone against that. The stage show already did that and there was no backlash or complaints or anything like that. The remakes often make strange changes or changes just for the sake of change which makes me doubt giant Ursula's inclusion. But I hope you're right and she is included. I wouldn't be surprised though if they turned Flotsam and Jetsam giant instead.

[Disney Duster]

I guess maybe not as much as I remember, but it was one of those times when it was several people other than me bothered by the possibility she would be cut.

Reading that back now, I was just thinking of how the Giant Ursula scene sort of mirrors and inverses the shark scene. In that scene, Ariel is exploring a ship that doesn't move while a monster chases her. In the Giant Ursula scene, the monster (Ursula) is mostly stationary while the ships circle around her. Ursula is a more metaphorical beast trying to swallow her whole--they put a point on it more when Ariel enters her lair and makes the deal while literally "in the belly of the beast." That's part of the reason I always loved the deleted "Fathoms Below" because the verses about Ursula make her sound like a monster in the deep, like Moby Dick or the Kraken. I was just thinking about Cinderella, and that it does a similar reverse from the beginning in the climax: near the beginning Cinderella rescues a mouse from a trap and near the ending the mice rescue her from her locked room. I like when stories mirror themselves in ways you can see when you think about them long enough, makes them more interesting and adds more impact / substance to the stories, imo.

And perhaps Ursula raises the ships to sort of mock Ariel, who she must've watched exploring the ship as well as visiting Scuttle, I suppose, by hoping they might crash into and kill her (basically having something she'd been interested in ending up destroying her in a dark way). Ursula is a very twist-the-knife sort of character that way. As I was writing that part you quoted this morning, I had the thought that Ursula's death (speared to death) isn't that weird now that I think of it considering she had been trying to harpoon Ariel herself just before it happens.

Oh, ok. I guess I don't remember about the outcry over Vanessa, either. I never quite noticed that about Cinderella saving a mouse in the beginning and being saved by mice in the end! Brilliant! I did, however, write down how many scenes in the film mirror each other, in fact pretty much the second half mirrors the first half (Cindy is awake doing chores in the morning including tea, there's a proclamation, she tries to get her wish, her stepmother destroys that chance in the foyer downstairs, until magically Cindy is saved and gets the Prince, applies to the first half and second half if you consider the slipper magical). That Ursula as a monster thing is so cool. And the ships killing Ariel would be really ironic, you're right! Poor Ariel! I think Ariel would be more than harpooned by the giant trident. More like flattened lol.

I wouldn't be surprised though if they turned Flotsam and Jetsam giant instead.

OMG please no!!!!

Hey guys, wouldn't it be awesome if somehow this turned out to be a really good version of Disney's classic? Like, they actually do things pretty right? I would need a red-headed mermaid Ariel even though I know Divinity actually wants her hair natural, but you know, magical mermaid hair that becomes natural on land would be perfect for me. Maybe they will do everything pretty perfect. Maybe they won't f*** it up? You know, maybe it will be a great classic in it's own right!

[blackcauldron85]

Melissa McCarthy Says She 'Surprised' Herself with Her Singing Abilities as Ursula in Little Mermaid
https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/celebr ... li=BBnb2gh

[Vlad]

I'm super excited to see what she will do with this role. And even more excited to hear her sing. As for the final battle with the giant Ursula, I too think it works better in animation, but they did do a giant Jafar genie in Aladdin, so who knows.

[Disney Duster]

GAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!! I cannot WAIT FOR THIS MOVIE!!!!!!!!! I cannot wait to see my third favorite Disney film and one of my top favorite films ever to be rendered in full live-action and photorealistic CGI!!!!! I know I wanted a white, red-headed Ariel, but I cannot wait to see Halle sing and act as the iconic rebellious mermaid princess!!!!! I bet she can tap into Ariel's fiery spirit!!!!! And Melissa Mcarthy will surely bring it as the delicious Ursula!!!!!!! Ahhhh, the drama, the magic!!!!!!! Only a year and a few months left!!!!! I CANNOT WAAAAAAIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Farerb]

‘Bridgerton’ Actress Simone Ashley to Appear in ‘The Little Mermaid’
https://thedisinsider.com/2022/03/29/br ... e-mermaid/

[DisneyJedi]

Okay, I’m confused. What’s this about Vanessa getting cut?

[D82]

According to the Twitter account Disney Live-Actions Brasil, the website of Emily Coates' agency reveals her character in The Little Mermaid is called Rosa.

[D82]

Apparently (if I understood it correctly), Halle Bailey liked a post by a fan featuring the possible main cast, including Ariel's sisters, so fans are seeing this as a confirmation the actresses featured along with Ariel and Triton in the image below are the ones playing them. It seems they had been rumored to be her sisters for some time, since another fan came to the conclusion they could play the characters based on the research they did. Apparently, that person noticed the actresses began following members of the cast and crew and posted photos from Italy around the time the shooting was taking place.


Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cb3XtERO9Ct/

[Disney's Divinity]

Of course the daughters are going to be five different races despite Javier Bardem being the father and the mother having had to be Black to explain Halle Bailey being Ariel. About as bad as the lily White actor for Eric being the son of a Black Queen and King (a Queen and King that didn't even exist in the original film), and more proof they're simply making a film version of the shitty Broadway show rather than re-making the original film people actually like. I just find this kind of nonsensical casting so stupid outside of theater or one of those live shows they put on TV sometimes. Particularly made me roll my eyes that they cast a red-headed White girl as one of the sisters, when that's what Ariel is supposed to look like.

They just really took a dump on this film all around, hard to say if this or Snow White Without the Seven Dwarfs will be worse. A Hercules without the Muses or the soundtrack would definitely be a contender, but there may still be a chance for that one not to blow it. Too bad this couldn't have been more like B&tB and Aladdin, where they actually attempted to re-make the originals, I enjoyed those two. No idea why they'd follow Mulan's "Change Everything" path when that film rightfully bombed and got dragged by audiences, too, whereas all three of B&tB, Aladdin, and TLK made a billion each by doing it right. Hope they both join Mulan in the bomb column like they deserve.

[Disney Duster]

Ok, so, when we had our big fight, Disney's Divinity, over if Beauty and the Beast (2017) or Cinderella (2015) were better, you were right that Beauty and the Beast (2017) was more monetarily successful, and you could say it was better because more people liked watching it, or at least wanted to watch it. I still say Cinderella (2015) was better, but that's my opinion. But when you said to me all the way back, when we were merely getting a poster and images from Beauty and the Beast (2017), that no matter what I said it would be more successful than Cinderella (2015), I should have said, "Well, duh! The original Beauty and the Beast (1991) is more popular than Cinderella (1950)!" I predict this will make even more money than Beauty and the Beast (2017), just shy of as much as The Lion King (2019) made, because the original The Little Mermaid (1989) has got to be in the top 5 most popular Disney movies ever. If I am wrong and it bombs like you say, you are even smarter than I knew you to be (which is very, very smart). But no, this film is gonna make at least a billion.

[Disney's Divinity]

I think it's unlikely for it to bomb as you say, TLM is a popular property and average audiences aren't going to expect it to be as awful as it sounds because they don't follow it as closely as we do, I only said I hope it bombs. I had similar feelings towards Mulan--I thought that one would do close to a billion, too, despite how much they'd ripped it to shreds. Before we found out they'd cut the music and half the cast, I'd been rooting for its success after all. That it ended up bombing was an unexpected, pleasant surprise considering what they ended up doing to it.

That said, even providing this had been done properly and we were also in pre-COVID days, I don't believe it would've made as much as B&tB and TLK. I always expected it would do somewhere between Maleficent-level and a billion. I think Cinderella would've made more if it had seemed more distinguishable as a remake of the animated Disney film because the Disney film is the more popular version. To someone who didn't follow it closely, it probably seemed more like any random adaptation of Cinderella rather than a remake. The same would happen to Hercules or Tarzan remakes if they were non-musicals, they've made so many adaptations of those two that they would disappear into the crowd and flop just like every other adaptation. I believe if Cinderella 2015's Cinderella had looked more like animated Cinderella at the ballroom (hair up and a more similar dress) and/or the film featured the classic songs and highlighted them in the advertisements, it might've been different. HBC's and Lily James' versions of "Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo" and "ADiaWYHM" were fine--no idea why they didn't make the film a musical. They could've used the remake to give the Stepmother and Prince songs, for example.

EDIT: I was just looking back at the beginning of the Cinderella 2015 thread. It's amazing how long ago that was. Super Aurora and Goliath were still around (and were commenting on how Drew Barrymore and Amanda Seyfried were too ugly for them to sleep with, gross). Apparently Mark Romanek was going to direct to begin with. I wish he had, considering I didn't really care for the finished product. He was mostly known for music videos though (he has a Beyonce connection)? Hmm. Someone there mentioned Saoirse Ronan as Ariel. I never even thought of her, but she was a great actress with red hair and blue eyes. Too bad it hadn't been her or Sophia Lillis--but I don't think there was any chance this project would've been a proper remake of The Little Mermaid with Lin-Manuel Miranda having latched onto it, turned it into his pet project, and poisoned it from the start. Can't stand him. He's like the anti-Ashman. I can only imagine he had little involvement of Encanto's story for that one to have actually turned out okay; I give Jennifer Lee more credit for that than him, considering I've liked everything else she's been involved with aside from WIR. I would've enjoyed a film with Watson and Blanchett opposite one another, but I suppose it turned out for the best since I didn't really like Cinderella 2015 in the end.

Now I'm looking through the B&tB 2017 thread and saw this post of mine way back then:

Now if only the The Little Mermaid live-action film that was being made was by Disney and an adaptation of the animated film. *tear*

With them hewing closer to the Broadway show--so close and yet so far. At this point, I'd rather they had simply made a new adaptation of the tale where she died at the end altogether over a film version of the horrid Broadway show. It's sort of funny reading through the B&tB thread, since I apparently thought they might imitate that film's Broadway show (having the servants slowly turning into objects over time rather than being furniture from the beginning; including "Home," "If I Can't Love Her," etc.) and they didn't even though B&tB's Broadway show was very successful. They didn't with TLK either, and its show was even more successful than B&tB's. But they did with TLM even though its show flopped. Disney is so moronic sometimes.

[Toky]

The sisters all having different races confirms sort of they all will represent a different sea/ocean and thus part of the world..which is a pretty cool idea, adding a bit of mythology to it.